The Royal Bank of Canada is Canada's largest chartered bank. It has over 1,300 branches across Canada and has offices in over 30 countries. Its primary marketing name is now RBC and that name is used on all its business units, which are collectively known as RBC Financial Group. For example, RBC's investment banking operations are done under the name RBC Capital Markets. RBC now has a large retail banking presence in the southeastern United States, marketing itself there as RBC Centura (Centura was the North Carolina based bank RBC purchased in 2001 to establish its U.S. foothold).

RBC has carved out a name for itself as a leader in the Caribbean region. RBC Royal Bank maintains a profitable base from its Caribbean operations, and has retained high brand recognition among its other top competitors. RBC is especially known in the anglophone Caribbean for its various personal and business banking services in retailing, loans, and credit offerings.

History

Timeline

• Merchants Bank found in Halifax 1864
• Changed named to Merchants' Bank of Halifax 1869
• Expansion in Maritimes 1870-1880s
• Bermuda office opens 1882
• Havana office opens 1898
• Name changed to Royal Bank of Canada 1901
• Head Office moved from Halifax to Montreal 1907

RBC was founded in 1864 in Halifax, Nova Scotia as The Merchants Bank. It received its federal charter in 1869. The name was changed to The Royal Bank of Canada in 1901. In 1990 the name was shortened to Royal Bank of Canada. The bank's symbol is a golden lion clutching a globe, on a blue background. An older version had a crown above the globe and had the lion facing to the left rather than the right. RBC is currently headquartered in downtown Toronto, Ontario at the Royal Bank Plaza.

On May 31, 2004, a problem during a routine software update affected the accounts of ten million customers. For three days, the entire RBC system failed to register withdrawals and deposits against customer balances. The problem cost the bank C$9 million to resolve.

In the November 22-December 5, 2004 issue of Canadian Business magazine, the Royal Bank of Canada was ranked the most valuable Canadian brand, with an estimated value of C$4.4 billion.

Mergers

Like many Canadian banks, Royal Bank grew through expansion and mergers:

• Union Bank of Halifax 1910
• Traders Bank of Canada 1912
• Quebec Bank 1917
• Northern Crown Bank 1918
• Union Bank of Canada 1925.

Executives

Presidents

• Thomas E. Kenny 1879-1908
• Herbert Samuel Holt (1908-1934)
• Morris Wilson 1934-1946
• James Muir 1949-1960
• Earle McLaughlin 1960-1979
• Rowland Frazee 1979-1986

Chair

• Allan Taylor 1986-1995
• John E. Cleghorn 1995-2001
• Gord Nixon 2001-present

Membership

RBC is a member of the Canadian Bankers Association (CBA) and registered member with the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC), a federal agency insuring deposits at all of Canada's chartered banks. It is also a member of:

• Interac
• VISA International
• Plus Network for VISA card users
• NYCE ATM Network

External links

• RBC Online Banking
• RBC's website
• RBC Centura
• RBC Mortgage Corp
• Royal Trust Company and Royal Trust Corporation
• RBC Royal Bank of Canada (Caribbean and Bahamas)